You may have heard about gold prices reaching record levels in recent times and wondered whether this is a new way of investing money which has only appeared in the last few years.
It is certainly true that the ease with which we can now invest in the sought after yellow metal means that more and more people are putting their money into gold. However, as a reliable investment vehicle gold bullion and gold coins have been used by both governments and individuals for a very long time.
It is believed that gold coins first appeared in Chine around the year 600Bc. Since then just about all of the world’s biggest and most advanced civilisations such as the Greeks and the Romans have used gold as the basis for their most valuable coins.
Currencies Fixed to Gold
The industrial revolution and the subsequent years then brought with them a new way of using gold, as powerful countries such as the UK moved onto the gold standard, which basically provided a way of fixing a nation’s currency to the price of gold.
It was at the end of the 18th century when the real value of gold was noted in Europe. A long sequence of costly wars and the cost of trading with the Far East had led to a huge drop in the continent’s gold reserve levels.
The supply and demand of the precious metal has played its part in the economic history of the world in the period since then. However, most of this story has been played out far from the sight of the ordinary investor in the street. Gold has traditionally been a commodity which has been valued highly by countries and by wealthy investors but it has usually been out of the reach of the rest of the population.
A New Way of Investing
This is what has changed in recent years and why we are now hearing more about gold in the news for ordinary investors. It is no longer an exclusive commodity which the man in the street can’t get his hands on.
In fact, many ordinary investors who don’t have a fortune to play around with or to risk now choose to put their money into gold. This is because it is considered as a safer and more stable type of investment than, for example, stocks and shares or property. In the current economic climate there is no doubt that buying shares in a company is a risky investment, so the chance to buy a modest amount of gold has come along at the perfect time for many people.
Is Gold a New Type of Investment?
Article written and supplied by Daniel Roberts. Daniel is a writer at Regal Assets and has blogged on topics such as why is gold such a valuable investment and the latest trends on the precious metal investment market.
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